Shadowless Knights
by Sumi-Sprite
Summary: Fill for a KINK Prompts on DreamWidth. The Black Knight is one of the oldest Guardians, perhaps older than MiM, and his goal is as simple as it is resolute; defeat Pitch and his fearling army. Thought to be a suit of soulless armor, the truth is far more complicated... Prompt by 'pretzel logic'.
1. Chapter 1

**Shadowless Knights.**

Ch. 1

_A/N~ Ha ha ha, is the title just a bad play on words, or a REALLY bad pun? I have no idea. XD_

_But anyways! As promised, a fist installment of the lovely prompter/filler's own 'Black Knights and Writhing Shadows' prompt created by the lovely pretzel_logic. Hope this lives up to your standards! Please enjoy!_

_NOTICE! This is very likely to remain Gen through and through (for once) so don't get too eager for slash!_

Pairing: N/A

Genre: Humor, hurt/comfort, tragedy, adventure.

Rating: T (for swearing and violence)

Enjoy!

_~S~_

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

A long time ago, far longer than any one person can remember, there lived a general.

This general was noble, brave, honorable, and kind. He was strong where others were weak, and courageous where others were fearful. He was a man who fought in a war against fear itself, a true knight amongst the people who loved and admired the man who swore to protect them.

The war of the Fearlings and Dream Pirates was a fierce battle that spanned galaxies, and the general was known throughout each and every one of them. The Knight of the Golden Army as he was known. He fought as viciously yet gracefully as a wild cat, and as time in the war passed, the mere mention of his name would send their enemies fleeing.

And yet, admired and worshiped as he was, those who truly knew him knew he fought not just for the people he was to protect, or the planets he was assigned to guard. No, he fought for only one person, all of whom was always waiting for him to come home.

His daughter. A lovely girl of obsidian black hair and forest green eyes. She was who he fought for. It was her life, her future, her safety he fought for. It was every father's wish to make the world safe for their own child, even if he must move all heaven and hell for them. If presented with the opportunity to give them a brighter future, they would take it.

It was bittersweet though. The general rarely got to see his beloved daughter. But the few times they were reunited, not a single second was wasted in their time together. From playing to horseback riding, shopping and sight-seeing, to stargazing and reading bedtime stories. These were the moments the Gold Knight fought for. These were the moments he would look forward to once the war was put to an end.

And end it did.

But there was a catch…

The darkness was contained and captured. Locked away in hundreds of prisons and cages, the Fearlings and every other dark force was trapped and imprisoned. But like every prison, it needed a guard, a warden.

The Gold Knight volunteered himself to guard the black prison, even though he knew he would likely spend the rest of his days as such.

But as long as his daughter was safe, and as long as he would continue to keep her safe, he would gladly throw his very soul away.

He never would have guessed his own words would come true…

A long time ago, far longer than any one person can remember, there lived a general…

This general was once a noble, brave, honorable, and kind man…

But that was a long, long time ago. And like any old story, a new one would take its place.

Today, legends dictate of a knight, clad in midnight black armor. He is said to wander the earth in a seemingly pointless journey atop a sable steed. But this is not so. This knight, the Black Knight, has a duty. His job was to seek and destroy any and all Fearlings and other dark entities, and defeat Pitch Black.

The Black Knight has wandered the mortal world of Earth for thousands of years, and yet, nothing is known about him by others. Not even the other spirits know more than what vague legend dictates.

Some say he isn't even a 'he', but merely just an animated suit of armor created during the Golden Age to combat the darkness. But no one is completely sure as to what the Knight's true intentions are.

All they know is that, despite his enigmatic nature, he is good at his job of slaying Fearlings and other dark entities.

And due to this, the Man in the Moon decided now might be the time to call upon the Black Knight and his Guardians before it's too late…

To be continued…

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

_A/N~ Hm, kind of a monologue-y start, but that's how I like to start off stories like this. Hope you all like it!_

_Next time! The Guardians are warned of a threat by Pitch, and are told to seek the help of the mysterious Black Knight._

_Look forward to it!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Shadowless Knights.**

Ch. 2

_A/N~ Ugh, I am SO sorry this took so long to update! You see what happens when you take on six prompts? Sh** hits the fan and you can't keep up with updates! This is my Muse scolding me by the way, and I just want it to SHUT UP~_

_Please enjoy this update, and again, I apologize for the wait!_

_**NOTICE!**__ That this scene takes place ten years after Pitch's defeat, and Jack is an official Guardian at this point. Just keep this in my people!_

_**ALSO!**__ Check out my poll on my profile and vote for which fic you want to see updated more often. The poll will close this following Sunday, and the top poll result will have the most focus. Thank you!_

_Prompt link can be found on my profile!_

Pairing: N/A

Genre: Humor, hurt/comfort, tragedy, adventure.

Rating: T (for swearing and violence)

Enjoy!

_~S~_

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

The summons to the North Pole was not something out of the ordinary, nor was it always something serious or completely harmless. Whenever the Guardians were summoned – whether it be for an emergency or because an elf somehow got into the Northern Lights system wiring – nine out of ten times it was for good reason.

However, none of these reasons ever coordinated themselves too close to Christmas. The holiday only being mere weeks away, it came as a shock to the Guardians when they saw the summons cross their skies one afternoon.

Despite the oddity, each Guardians wasted no time in leaving their palaces, warrens, sleepy skies, or nomadic winds. Something was obviously wrong, and it would do no good to leave the summons unanswered, despite the coming of the caller's holiday.

"Something must be really shakin' up the jolly bloke…" Bunny grumbled, scrambling for the fireplace to warm his feet and ears.

Tooth, who was the first to arrive, hovered uneasily nearby to absently direct her fairies to various places around the world.

"How so?" She asked.

"Well think about it," Bunny grunted, "North has no problem summoning me three days from Easter, and yet he wouldn't even _consider_ taking a day off to summon us two weeks away from Christmas."

Sandy, the second to have arrived, gave a slightly apprehensive nod, forming an image of North and a question mark over his head. Bunny shrugged at the Dreamweaver.

"Dunno, mate. Things seemed fine these past few years, no dark spirits crawlin' around or causin' trouble on my end," he shrugged, looking to the fairy and Sandy, "How bout you two?"

"No, neither I or my fairies have seen or heard of anything unusual," Tooth shrugged, her amethyst eyes conveying her own confusion, "What about you Sandy?"

The star shook his glittery head in the negative. But he suddenly frowned and gestured to his next show of images; these ones featuring a familiar silhouette of an ambitious horse, a question mark, and a certain Nightmare King. The others looked uneasily at each other.

"You think it has to do with Pitch?" Tooth asked tentatively.

"Again? It's been ten years! Ain't no way that sorry bloke has crawled his way out of that hole that fast!" Bunny exclaimed, hopping over to join the other two, "Uh-uh, I think North's just hitting that paranoid phase of the season; you know how he sometimes gets when he's not reaching deadlines on time."

Tooth and Sandy shared a slightly apprehensive look with one another, but had to somewhat mentally agree. North did sometimes get into a sort of 'mood' if his toys weren't meeting standards or deadlines as much as they should. Hell, there was one particular year the man had nearly flown off the handle and summoned them all to frantically convey his woes of being unable to finish his work on time – instead of actually getting any work done. He would only realize this a day later and go into a tizzy, pumping out toy models before blazing through the Yeti toy stations to work on them himself. Word on the street is Phil lost a few patches of fur trying to keep north from running himself into the ground that year; literally.

"But wouldn't we be hearing about it by now?" Tooth asked as Sandy peeked over the edge of the railing leading into the bustling Workshop – everyone was busy, yes, but not chaotically so like that one year…

"For all I know, he forgot he summoned us and is chiseling away at some ice, the bloody sod…" Bunny grumbled, taking an egg out to paint.

It was at this point a window burst open and a certain spirit of winter flew in, racing up to their side.

"Hah! I'm not late this time!" Jack crowed in triumph, "What do you say to that, Kangaroo?"

"I say I ain't a bloody kangaroo for the ten thousand and eighty second time…"

"Eighty five, but who's keeping count?" was the cheeky reply.

The barefoot spirit sauntered over to a table to take his usual perch on its edge, icing a passing elf as he did so. He snagged a cookie from the place the elf was carrying before looking to the others.

"So what's up? Why'd North want us all here this close to Christmas?" jack asked, nibbling on the gingerbread.

Bunny waved a paw at him, "Bah, just the wanker gettin' into the seasonal crazies." He said.

"We don't know that yet Bunny," Tooth said, "For all we know, it probably is Pitch."

"Pitch?" Jack asked, his grip tightening on his staff, "Again? It's only been ten years! You all even said it would take him _at least_ a century to crawl out of his hole!"

"Oi, it's not like we expected him to show up ten years ago," Bunny snapped, "Back then, he wasn't supposed to show up again _ever_."

"We had very good reason to think he had died out with the Dark Ages back then, Jack," Tooth explained, "But we won't know anything until North tells us himself."

Jack lowered his defensiveness at this, but he remained tense. He had not in the least bit forgotten about what had happened ten years ago. The Nightmare battle with Pitch had been something to remember, yes, but it didn't mean he wanted to. But even still, to this day jack would sometimes wonder what could have been if things had gone differently, if they had somehow reached out to Pitch.

Jack frowned to himself at this and sighed. There he went again, thinking naïve thoughts about a shade that was too good an actor for anyone's own safety. The only ones he had confided this odd sympathy in was North and Tooth – and while he knew they supported him fully, they were not so sure as how to perceive the sympathy Jack directed at their enemy.

"Well then, where is the big man?" he asked, leaning against his staff passively.

At that moment the large doors to North's office flew open, and the mentioned man marched right out, stepping over elves and various floor-racing toys. Once he stood before the gathered spirits, he clapped his hands together and grinned in greeting.

"Everyone! Thank you all for coming!" he bellowed cheerfully. Jack leaned over towards Bunny.

"Doesn't look like he's got holiday-fever to me…" he muttered. Bunny only frowned and crossed his arms.

"Alright North, let's cut the pleasantries short, something's obviously up for you to summon us a few weeks before Christmas." He said firmly.

"Bunny!" Tooth scolded the Pooka, feathers fluffing.

North suddenly sighed and seemed to lose his air of cheerful jolliness. He waved a hand at Tooth and gave her a weary, though grateful, smile.

"No, no, Tooth, he is right, this is time for being serious." He said.

"What do you mean?" Tooth asked him, "Is something going on?"

"Wait, does this have anything to do with all those disappearances?" Jack suddenly broke in.

All eyes swerved and locked onto Jack at this, all wide and shocked at the implication. The winter sprite withdrew in on himself slightly, feeling like a shy child put in the spotlight. He was still getting somewhat used to people seeing and interacting with him after all, and various people locking onto him like a heat-seeking torpedo was quite a bit disconcerting.

"How did you know about this?" North asked, surprised.

The three Guardians left out of the proverbial loop looked between the two before Bunny frowned and rounded on Jack.

"What are ya talkin' about, mate?" He asked, "What disappearances? And why didn't you say something sooner!?"

"Hey, I only just found out a couple days ago!" Jack defended, holding his hands up, "I only heard about it when I was passing through New York. I passed a TV store, and some story was going on in the window about people disappearing all around the word."

"And you didn't tell us sooner, why?" Bunny scrutinized. Jack fell into his classic defiant-mode at this, refusing to back down from Bunny's challenge.

"Look, I only just found out days ago. I don't exactly go around watching news stations all the time," he countered, "And besides, people go missing all the time! I didn't think anything of it until now."

"This may be true, Jack, but these disappearances have been going on for months now." North cut in.

The attention was back on the Guardian of Wonder at this. Looking to each of the spirits in turn, North turned and gestured to the giant rotating globe that dominated the center of the Workshop.

"For the past three months now, people have been disappearing at random," he started, "These people are of all ages between five and thirteen, when their belief is at their most fragile. Yetis reported that none of the missing people have been found, nor have any bodies."

"Wait, wait, back up a bit here," Bunny cut in, "So people, kids, are disappearing – have been for the past few months now since around September – no bodies have been found, and yet we're only just now hearing about this?"

"Like Jack, I only found out recently," North said grimly, "Last night in fact, by very reliable source."

The serious frown on his face and his implication brought pause to all present. Realization dawning, Sandy hesitantly formed a familiar shape over his head. North nodded.

"Yes," he said, "Man in Moon spoke to me last night about these missing kids. He himself had only just noticed recently as well, so whatever is doing this is far too sneaky to be human, and far too widespread."

"You…you think it's a spirit." Jack breathed, shoulders tensing. A somber nod from North.

"Is impossible for it to be a human," he said, "These kidnappings are happening worldwide, sometimes in various places at once, and no clues are left behind. It is as if these children never even existed, had never come home from school, had never left their rooms, have never went to bed…"

"Do you think this is Pitch's doing?" Tooth asked.

"Yeah, it smells like something he'd do," Bunny sniffed, "Not like he hasn't done it before."

"Wait, what?" Jack inquired, shocked eyes meeting Bunny, "He kidnapped kids once?"

"Long time ago, during the Dark Ages when he was stronger, long before you were around." Bunny elaborated.

Jack felt like he was slapped in the face. And he _pitied_ that guy? He made a mental note to get some more facts and history on Pitch off of the others later. Clearly Pitch was just as manipulative through the passage of time as he was in person.

North made an uncertain noise in his throat and crossed his arms, looking troubled.

"That is problem, I had assumed it was Pitch as well when I spoke with Manny," he said, "But what he showed me was very…confusing."

Sandy waved an arm to get North's attention before forming a crystal, and a question mark over his head. North 'ah'ed and motioned a Yeti to the control panel before the globe.

"Yes, after Manny told me of the disappearances, he showed me two things in Moon Stone." He said.

Nodding over to him, the Yeti pressed a few buttons and pulled a lever. The central mural on the floor representing the current Guardians – Jack having his own mural incorporated into it a while back – shifted and split away. Out of the sectioned off hole emerged a familiar crystal imbedded in moon rock, the iridescent crystal glowing a bright blue with dancing specks of white.

The Guardians had to squint their eyes slightly as the light flared before starting to lower and power down. Once it did and they were able to see, they weren't too sure just what it was they were looking at.

Centered over the beaming crystal light were two completely identical figures, both of which were unmistakable.

"Um…" Jack started, rubbing his eyes to make sure he was seeing right, "Why are there two Pitch's? Is this thing broken or something?"

"Moon Stone cannot break easily," North explained, "And even if it was, it wouldn't be spouting doubles."

"So then, what does this mean…?" Tooth asked apprehensively.

"I am not sure. Manny has not said anything about this image…" North said, scrutinizing the doubles while stroking his beard.

"Okay, aside from showing us two Pitch's, what's this other image he showed ya?" Bunny asked.

"Ah, that…" North waved over to the Yeti again.

The furry creature pressed a few more buttons and pulled a different lever. The crystal jerked slightly before it slowly started rotating. The previous image above it slowly shifted out, as if being covered by shutter blinds. It continued to turn for a few more seconds, just as another image started to form in its beaming light.

The crystal stopped, and left its final image displayed to the Guardians.

Complete silence descended upon the group, all eyes staring up at the final image above the Moon Stone with wide, startled eyes.

"A…" Jack started, confused, "A knight?"

"That ain't just any knight there, mate," Bunny said grimly, "That's the Shadowless Black Knight."

To be continued…

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

_A/N~ Again, I apologize for the delay, but now that I'm getting back into the groove of this fic, it should be a bit easier for me to work with it! Look forward to another update soon! Things are becoming ominous now~_

_~S~_

_R&R please!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Shadowless Knights.**

Ch. 3

_A/N~ Ugh, I'm REALLY getting tired of delaying things. I used to be on such a role with these things! But nooo~ I just HAD to drop into a writers-block limbo! DX I guess this kind of thing happens when your priorities are focused elsewhere, or on other fics._

_But anyways, hopefully I have redeemed myself. And if not…well…I'm going to hell anyways. So nothing's changed. XD_

_Please enjoy this update, and again, I apologize for the wait!_

Pairing: N/A

Genre: Humor, hurt/comfort, tragedy, adventure.

Rating: T (for swearing and violence)

_Enjoy!_

_~S~_

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

The Shadowless Knight, Jack had been told, was probably the most unknown being within the spirit and mortal realm. No one really knew who he was, where he came from, or even what his intentions were. Many theorized that he wasn't even a 'he' – rumor has it the Knight was just an animated suit of armor that the Moon had brought to life to combat the darkness. But no one truly knew.

Many have tried approaching the Knight – North himself had even tried speaking to him. But before anyone could so much as ask his name, he would ride off without a trace on his black steed. Or even if he didn't run off, the Knight would not speak, and would merely act as if his confronter did not even exist.

The implication sent a slight shudder up Jack's spine. The Knight sounded cold, lifeless. But he didn't sound good or bad per se. But even still, many were weary of the Knight, even though he has yet to attack another spirit. There was just something…unnaturally _eerie_ about the Knight.

And despite all of this, he and the Guardians were seeking out said Knight…

"Do ya even know where we're going ya gallah?" Bunny grouched, taking his customary clinging-for-dear-life seat on the sleigh.

"Of course I know!" North bellowed up front, "We are looking for Knight!"

"We know that ya bloody dag!" Bunny snapped, "I mean, do ya know where it even is!"

"We find Knight where Nightmares are!"

Bunny resisted the urge to throw his paws up and yell at the sky. For one, he could fly off the sleigh if he let go, and for another, Sandy would just hit him over the head and chastise him about not being able to control his temper. Again.

But this didn't mean he was going to sit back and let jolly old St. Nick drag he and the others all around the world on a wild goose chase! They had been out on the hunt for hours now, passing over the whole of South America and Europe, before circling around back to the US. It was ridiculous! Did North really expect to find _anything_ by playing a game of chance? Bunny was actually shocked North was allowing himself to do this random search while so close to his holiday…

"North, I think Bunny's right," Tooth interjected, "I think we need a better plan in finding the Knight. We're not going to make any progress if we're just going to randomly search for him."

"We are not looking for Knight!" North called over the wind.

"What the-!? Then what the bloody hell are we looking for!?" Bunny snapped.

"Whatever the cause is for these disappearances," North answered, "Manny says Knight can help and is somehow connected to kidnappings. All kidnappings are happening at night, and if we find whatever is taking children…"

"We'll find the Knight?" Jack inquired.

"Hopefully. I cannot be sure," North said, "But if Pitch is behind this, he will be using Nightmares or Fearlings to take children. And these are the things that the Knight hunts. We find Nightmare or Fearling, we may find Knight."

The debate was settled without another word. Though Bunny still remained skeptical, he didn't argue any further. It explained why they had been aimlessly flying around the countries and continents; the kidnappings were random, and had no real similarities aside from the fact that they happened at night. And if North was right, and Pitch was behind this, they had a small chance of finding the Knight if they happened upon a kidnapping. They had a better chance of finding one of many Fearlings or Nightmares, than just one Knight.

"Wait, stop! Down there!" Jack suddenly exclaimed, leaning over the edge of the sleigh.

"What is it Jack? What did you see?" North asked, yanking his reins to slow his reindeer down.

"I saw something in the square down there," Jack said, his hands tightening around his staff, "It looked like a horse."

"Too dark for pony ridin'…" Bunny growled, tentatively looking over the sleigh's edge.

North nodded in affirmative and snapped his reins, guiding his reindeer down into the small town in the suburbs of New Jersey. They landed silently along the silent suburban neighborhood that sat on the border of a thick forest, just along a construction site where a new house was in the process of being built.

Everyone climbed out of the sleigh, their weapons drawn and senses on high. North shuffled over to Jack while keeping his eyes on the area around them.

"Where did you see it?" he asked lowly.

"There," Jack gestured to the partly constructed home, "I saw it in the lumber."

The large Guardian nodded and gestured for the others to follow. They all quietly yet swiftly advanced onto the home. Once they stepped over the curb, North made a wide sweeping gesture with his sabers; split up. Each Guardian broke off from one another to surround the incomplete home.

Nothing was found so far from any of the Guardians. But then again, customary clues like footprints or bits of hair or cloth were not things to expect if the culprit was a spirit. Add to that, if whatever was going on was Pitch's doing, they could count on him leaving no traces of himself. If they did in fact find something linked to Pitch, it was likely left on purpose as a means to mock the Guardians; it certainly seemed like something he'd do.

Jack, his form broken up by the skeletal shadows of the incomplete house, swept his staff in every direction he looked. Past experience has taught him to always have his weapon where his eyes are, and so far the technique has not been with fault or flaw. His ears were on high alert, and his eyes were shot wide open as he focused on trying to see or hear something out of the ordinary.

So far, nothing was made apparent. The frost sprite swept over what was to be the backyard to the home. Even within the shade of the trees pressing into the neighborhood borders, nothing was out of place.

'_Did I imagine it?'_ he wondered, _'Moon, if I just imagined it, Bunny is never gonna let me-'_

_Crunch!_

Jack snapped his head to his left, facing the forest beyond the ground line. Something shifted in the foliage, and it was big. The sound of what Jack could only speculate to be either a pinecone or a large branch breaking put him on edge. It was too dark to see though – not even the Moon's light was able to break through the thick canopy. It certainly couldn't have been a deer – not in this area – and he doubted it was one of the others.

"Oi, frostbite."

"Guh…!" Jack barely caught himself from jumping a few stories into the air from the whispered call. He whipped his head around and scowled at the Pooka crouching on a pile of lumber.

"What…!?" he hissed as quietly as possible. Bunny, ignoring the obviously irked winter spirit, gestured towards the woods.

"What'd ya hear?" he asked quietly. Jack forced himself to relax, but kept himself alert; he had no reason to attack Bunny while possibly only feet away from an enemy.

"I heard something break back there," he whispered, eyeing the edge of the foliage again, "I can't see that far in though."

Bunny narrowed his hunter-green eyes and pricked his ears. The Pooka lopped off of the lumber pile and onto the ground on all fours in a crouch. Jack watched, hesitant, as the Pooka's nose twitched and his ears rotated as he took in the surroundings. The frost sprite did not risk any movement or sound on his part – frightened that he may both disrupt Bunny or alert whatever it was he heard to their presence. But why was he so damn tense now? He was edgy when they battled Pitch, and a bit cautious, but never this badly. Jack has never felt so…_cornered_ in all his immortal life.

'_What…is this…?'_ he had to wonder. His knuckles turned white as his grip on his staff tightened to a near breaking point. The joints of his fingers became numb, the jagged and uneven wood digging into his flesh.

Jack felt his heart jump into his throat as a loud rustle was heard. Bunny visibly tensed and his fur stood on end, making the Pooka look bigger than he actually was. In any other circumstance, Jack would have thought it made him look fluffier; but in this light, under this suffocating _thing_, it only made the other look like a wild beast.

Bunny's paws tightened around his boomerangs, and his mouth tightened into a thin line. Slowly, yet meticulously, the Pooka crossed his arms over his chest, readying to loose his weapons on whatever it was he was hearing. Jack's breathing increased into near hyperventilating, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end as he waited for _something_ to happen.

The rustling increased, this time visibly disturbing the line of shrubbery only mere feet away from them. His hearing drowned in a disgustingly loud thumping noise resonating from his chest, Jack felt his vision tunnel and lock onto a single cluster of leaves next to a tree.

Bunny flinched, and Jack brought his staff up when-

_Fwish!_

"HOLY-!?"

Suddenly the night sky and two stacked walls of flat wooden boards invaded his vision. Jack felt like his skin had leaped off of his very bones. A part of his brain was relieved that this was not true when he fell back between two piles of lumber, and the pain of wood scraps and rocks dug into his back. He vaguely registered hearing Bunny cursing, but he was distracted by the sudden _relief_ that washed over him. He had only seen it briefly, but it had been long enough to slowly bring his resolve back from its petrified state.

"A squirrel," he heard Bunny rasp uneasily, "It was just a damn squirrel…"

Jack barked out a sharp, slightly hysterical laugh before clamping his mouth shut. His eyes were wide and seemed permanently glued to the blue-black of the night sky. Jack didn't even register how painfully his shoulders were bunched up and nearly touching his ears in the cramped space. He was too caught in both trying not to break out into hysterical tears or laughter, and calm the jackhammer he was sure was trying to break out of his chest and make a run for parts unknown.

"A…a squirrel…" he didn't even seem to hear himself, or realize he had spoken, but his words were heard.

Bunny sighed in exasperation and sheathed his boomerangs. Jack's line of vision of the sky was suddenly obscured by the very disgruntled looking visage of the grey and white Pooka.

"Ya done bein' a loon, ya gallah?" he grunted.

Jack laughed breathlessly as his brain finally started working for him again. His nerves prickled as the adrenaline drained from his body, and sensation was returned to his limbs. Suddenly being in such cramped quarters was the first thing he registered as unpleasant, and a mental voice seemed to deadpan just how _done_ he was with all of this.

"Uh…y-yeah," he groaned, trying to wiggle free of his confines, to no avail, "It was just a…a squirrel."

"Yeah, I saw," Bunny grumbled. But he suddenly smirked, "You were all worked up over a peanut-chewnin' rodent!"

"Hey, in my defense, I had _no_ idea it was a squirrel," Jack protested, "And you were just as freaked out too! You puffed up like a Pomeranian!"

"Only cause you got scared first!" Bunny barked out a chortle. Against his will, Jack felt his mouth break into a slightly strained grin as his once resolve slowly evolved into one of mirth.

"I was not scared! And I especially was _not scared_ of something from your side of the family!" he said.

"Oi, I ain't no squirrel." Bunny snorted.

"Yeah, you're a kangaroo in denial."

"Keep it up and I won't help ya outta there."

Jack scoffed, but resigned himself to calm down. It seriously was quite cramped where he was, and his shoulders and collarbones were starting to ache. He vaguely entertained the thought of him possibly being claustrophobic – it wouldn't surprise him. He hated cramped spaces…

Wiggling an arm free, he held it out to the Pooka expectantly, "Fine, fine, just get me out of here. My arm's getting numb."

Rolling his eyes, but not about to leave the poor sap like he was, Bunny grabbed the offered hand in his paw and firmly pulled back. He frowned minutely when the frost sprite barely budged; he was stuck tight.

"Geez ya sod, were you really so scared that you wedged yourself in there tighter than a screw?" he grunted, adding his other hand to help pull.

"I was not – ow! Hey, careful – scared!" Jack protested.

A handful of firm tugs later, Jack was at least now slightly upright. But his shoulders seemed unwilling to slip out of their confines. His hoodie was also getting caught of slivers from the wood, and only hindering his desire to escape. Though he was slightly grateful his staff wasn't in the way – somewhere during all of the chaos, he had dropped it, and he could be seen lying on the ground just a few inches away from his feet.

"Sure, keep tellin' yerself that…" Bunny grumbled.

"I will! And you can just-"

Bunny quirked a brow at Jack's pause in his comeback, but suddenly frowned when he noticed Jack wasn't even looking at him, but at some point behind him. The Pooka was suddenly on alert, and his ears pricked – but he couldn't hear anything. And deciding that Jack's staring was far too intense to be considered a 'made you look' trick, Bunny slowly turned to look over his hunched shoulders and at what Jack was staring at.

His green eyes blinked owlishly in surprise, wondering if he was seeing properly.

The girl was young; she looked no older than maybe seven or eight. She wore nothing but a slightly dirtied long-sleeved white nightgown with little flower frills on the hem. She had dark, messy black hair that obscured her face from sight. Adding in her hunched shoulders, and tense stance, she seemed to be trying to curl in on herself. Her right arm was crossed tightly over her chest, clutching at what Bunny uncertainly noted to be an old dog collar and tag, while her left arm hung limply by her side. She was barefoot, her pale legs splattered with dark dirt, and littered with small scrapes and cuts.

Bunny gave Jack a questioning look, but the frost sprite merely shrugged – as best he could anyways – and nodded over to her. Bunny cleared his throat and put on a more friendlier face, pinning his ears back in a non-threatening manner as he approached the girl.

"Hey kiddo, whatcha doin' out here this late?" he asked gently, kneeling down a few feet away from her, "You should be in bed, sheila."

The girl made a whimpering sound and shuffled her feet, her hand tightening around the collar. His ears perking slightly, Bunny vaguely made out the words 'no' and 'bad' from the girl. He frowned in concern and shuffled closer to her.

"Did somethin' happen?" he asked softly, compassionately, "Are ya lost? Did ya lose yer mum, or dad?"

Her shoulders were shaking now, and she was slowly shaking her head, causing the collar's tag to jingle eerily against its metal clasp. Now quite a bit worried, Bunny shuffled closer until he was within arm's reach of the girl.

"Can I help ya with anythin'?" he tried again, "I can take ya home if ya want. It ain't safe out here for a little ankle-bitter like you to be-"

"Bad dog."

Both Bunny and Jack quirked their brows at this and shared an odd look. Dog? What dog? There weren't any dogs around – Bunny would have smelled or heard if any were around.

"Did a dog hurt ya?" he wondered aloud, gesturing to the collar, "Is tha' it? Or did you lose your pet?"

"Bad dog." The girl rasped again, her whole body now shaking. The wind was howling ominously, and Jack felt a sudden wave of dread come over his body suddenly. This wind…wasn't like his wind.

Bunny could also feel the strange shift in the area, and his worry for the child increased tenfold. It obviously was not safe there anymore; it extended beyond the little girl merely getting stuck somewhere or having something from the construction site falling on her. They needed to get the others and leave.

"Alright kiddo, I think we can help ya out," Bunny said, rising up on his haunches, "Just stay there, kay? I need to help get my friend out of that wood, then we can go see Santa, and the Tooth Fairy, and-"

"Bad dog…!"

Bunny's fur stood on end, and he felt his racing heart drop into his gut. He suddenly couldn't take his eyes off of the forest behind the girl. His green eyes swiveled between the dozens of burning yellow eyes staring at him from the foliage, each one causing fear and horror to fester in his body. And the girl herself…something was wrong with her.

"Uh…" Jack started, now deeply wishing he was out of his confines, "Bunny…?"

The Pooka swallowed audibly, keeping his eyes locked onto the writhing masses growling and snarling in the foliage. Every instinct in his body was screaming at him to turn tail and run. But his desire to get to the girl first override these instincts, and he slowly reaches out to her.

"Kid," he said, his paw brushing against her shoulder, "We need to go and-"

"**BAD DOG!**"

Bunny had not even a split second to react anywhere beyond freezing up, and allowing himself to be toppled over by the furry black mass that leaped out at him. It was this action that likely saved him from being mauled, as the thing surpassed Bunny, and instead went _straight for Jack_.

Jack swore rather loudly and writhed in his confines. The black thing – a dog, he vaguely noted in the back of his head – planted both paws on the two stacks and thrust its head into the gap towards Jack. The force of the impact, coupled with the beast's sheer size, caused the stack of wood to shuffle and shift, allowing Jack to scoot further into what was now deemed the safest place in the entire neighborhood.

"BUNNY!" he screamed, pushing his head back at an uncomfortable angle to prevent the all-too-close and slobbering jaws from clamping down on his face.

The dog barked madly, its maw foaming and dripping with putrid slobber. A part of Jack that was still floating in a calmer spectrum of his mind seemed to take note that the dog shared traits with a Nightmare. Everything about it was black, save for its eyes and the gaping yellow abyss that was its throat. But unlike a Nightmare, the beast seemed to be made of not sand, but something less tangible. Like a living shadow…

'_My staff…'_ Jack thought, _'I need my staff…!'_

Jack's foot, which the dog seemed keen on ignoring, tried to find purchase and reach under the shaggy curtain of fur. The pads of his feet swept and tried to locate his staff, but to no avail. He was further into the stack of wood, which meant he was further away from his staff. He couldn't reach it!

"Frost!"

The dog, once mere centimeters from Jack's nose, suddenly yowled and was shoved back by an all too familiar form of grey and white fur. The harsh flying-kick sent the dog onto its side a few feet off, but not hard or far enough to cause real damage. Bunny, covered in scratches and bleeding cuts, panted as his wide eyes veered and looked at Jack. He seemed to lose a bit of tension when he saw Jack was unharmed.

"Come on! We gotta go now!" he snapped, reaching in and yanking Jack out of the widened gap and onto his feet.

"But the girl-"

"That ain't no girl." Bunny growled, turning slightly to look over to where they last saw the child. Jack swore his ice powers rebelled and froze his blood.

Bunny was certainly right. That thing was no girl, let alone a child.

She looked odd before, but compared to this, she could have passed off as an angel. Her once human-like form was completely distorted and warped. Her once pale skin was now black as ink, and her chubby limbs were elongated into sickening twigs. Clawed fingers gripped the worn collar, the claws creating more tears in the material and crushing the metal components. And now that her form was slightly bigger, the two now seemed to notice her left arm wasn't limp at her side at all – she didn't have a left arm. Instead there was a thick mass of shadows and grotesque darkness. And where a hand should have been, there was a snarling dog's head, slobbering translucent grey-black slobber like a rabid beast.

"What…" Jack gripped his chest at the utter horror gnawing at his ribs and trying to break into his heart, "Is that?"

"A Fearling," Bunny grunted, looking equally distressed, "But it's _different_…"

The girl – the Fearling – suddenly unleashed an inhuman shriek that seemed like a warped combination of a tantrum scream, a child's crying, and a large man's bellow. It sent a sickening ball of dread into Jack's stomach. He suddenly had the urge to vomit, and was afraid he would start to if it meant getting this sticky _thing_ out of his gut.

More of the shadowy dogs emerged from the woods before them, all of them different from one another, but equally as disgusting and warped. Some had missing limbs, other had broken jaws that hung and dribbled ceaselessly. Some had extra body parts sticking out of them, while a few might have twisted builds or extra heads. But all of them looked hungry, and their brimstone eyes were locked right on him and Bunny.

There were so many of them, dozens of them were emerging from the dark forest and pressing into the back of the house. There were too many of those horrendous dogs…!

Bunny had never felt so _scared_ in all his immortal life.

_Run_, an inner voice whispered to him.

_Run, get away, you don't stand a chance, get out of there, run run run, get out get out get out run run RUN RUN!_

"GO!" Bunny grabbed Jack by the back of his hoodie and started sprinting for the other side of the house.

"Wait my staff-!"

"We'll come back later! We need to go now!" Bunny rasped. His pupils were blown and shrunk down to mere pinpricks, his hearing completely swamped and oversensitive from the adrenaline. He found it was nearly impossible to hear anything above the erratic thumping of his feet – or was that his heart? Jack's heart maybe? He couldn't tell anymore – all he knew was that he had to get out get out NOW.

Jack yelped as they suddenly turned a corner and came to the front of the house where the sleigh and the others should-

"What…?" Bunny gasped.

The sleigh was gone; the others weren't anywhere in sight. Bunny shifted his ears and raised his nose into the air – he couldn't hear or smell them. In fact, why hadn't they come when that huge commotion started up with those dogs? They would have heard he and Jack, or at the very least the barking of those things!

"Bunny, where are the others…!?" Jack rasped, suddenly breathless. It felt like he was slowly being closed in on, like he was in a shrinking room when there weren't even any walls around him.

Jack and Bunny looked to the sky, wondering if they maybe boarded the sleigh for a birds-eye view. Nothing. The grey sky – when did it become grey? – was completely devoid of the sleigh or any of their flight capable friends.

"Bunny…" Jack tugged on the Pooka's arm, drawing the others attention to the neighborhood ahead of them. Bunny gasped and felt yet another cold burden drop into his now heavy gut.

It was gone. The neighborhood, the houses, the yards, everything was just gone. It was nothing but black. There were only a handful of houses and the small park were visible in the void-like space, but even the town beyond it was gone. There was nothing but a few islands and paths leading to dead ends. The largest area around was the forest to their side, or the cul-de-sac they now stood in, the end of which led off to a jagged ledge that dropped into the abyss. The sky was a dark, smoky grey – where once was the presence of a soothing blue-black sky dotted with gossamer starts, there was nothing.

But what scared them most was the fact that not even the Moon was in the sky. It – _he_ – was _gone_.

Jack ran to the jagged edge of the cul-de-sac. His toes teased at the narrow ledge, before he jumped back when a part of it broke off and simply fell. A brief moment passed, and still Jack had yet to hear the piece of concrete hit a bottom. A floor, a platform, _something_, nothing was heard. There was nothing below them, just an endless abyss of black, and the neighborhood was in literal pieces.

It was like the neighborhood ever even existed.

"I…" Jack swallowed, his eyes blown wide open in stupefied terror, "I don't…!"

Bunny could only shake his head. This was far too much for the frantic Pooka. There were no smells in the air, there was no wind, no real sound, no atmosphere. He felt like he was in a vacuum. It was the same, yet it wasn't right.

Something was definitely _wrong_.

"**No! Bad dog!**"

The two veered around and tensed. The girl was back, this time in front of the skeletal house with her pack of distorted dogs. Her shoulders were heaving, as if she were in distress, and her hair was wilder and writhing like pained snakes. She pointed a clawed hand at the two Guardians, and with a warped sob, she said,

"**Sic them!**"

Liquid fear and nitrogen was suddenly coursing through Bunny and Jack's veins. The dogs gave out bloodcurdling howls and snarls as they suddenly up and charged at the two spirits.

As a last ditch effort, Jack tried to summon some of his frost - to no avail. It was like his powers were being blocked.* And seeing this, Bunny loosed his boomerangs at the hounds, only to have them deflected and bounce off the dogs like a pair of twigs to a brick wall.

A sense of dread came over the pair, and suddenly they became aware of how helpless they were right now. There was no escaping; Jack was weak and powerless without his staff, and Bunny couldn't fight off all those dogs with simple hand-to-hand combat. It was now more of a question of how they wanted to be killed; either be mauled by monstrous dogs, or leap and fall into the unknown for all eternity.

_We're trapped_, seemed to be their first thought. There was no way out – they were stuck in this unknown place and going to be mowed down by monsters.

Suddenly, Bunny's ears perked up. The sharp, whistling sound of something flying through the air caught his and Jack's attention, and turned their gazes skywards. Too fast for their eyes to catch, a long, cylindrical form tore through the still air, before planting itself into the center of the cul-de-sac separating the dogs from the two Guardians.

The dogs suddenly stopped and screeched to heavy halts. Their mismatched eyes leered at the black and golden arrow imbedded in the ground before them. Their gazes were intense, their jowls pulled back into distasteful grimaces; as if the arrow was the very bane of their existences.

Though stunned, Jack was about to inquire to Bunny if they can somehow make a run for it, but was startled into a stop by the sound of a loud, bone-crunching _crack!_

The two looked down at where the arrowhead was imbedded with wide, startled eyes. Cracks were starting to spider-web out from around the arrow. A moment passed before they expanded and spread out further. Another, shorter moment, and they gained speed and distance. A blink, and suddenly the cracks converged to form a large fissure spreading out in a horizontal line for either side of the cul-de-sac, effectively separating Jack and Bunny from the now stunned dogs. The cracks reached their end all at once. And when they thought nothing else was going to happen, gold light suddenly erupted from the fissure and lit up the area in a wall of light.

The dogs reared back as if burned – and it took the two a moment to realize that they had been burned. Blood-curdling screams and howls assaulted their ears, shadowy smoke rising from the parts of the dogs that had been touched, and were being eaten away, by the strange light.

Unknown to them, more cracks started to form, this time trailing out under the pack of hounds and sprouting more of the light. The golden light pierced and impaled the hounds like skewers, their screams only gaining volume as, one by one, each dog was brought down onto its haunches. The ground below them groaned as the cracks proved unable to hold such unstable ground. And when the lead dog reared up and stomped its paw like a mad horse, the ground suddenly gave way with a loud _crunch!_

With no purchase, the dogs plunged into the abyss with chunks of rock and concrete flanking them. In almost an instant, the area was silenced. Jack and Bunny were shocked to see that, despite them no longer being connected to the 'island' that held the house, they were still being held above the abyss on their little sliver of land.

Silence descended upon the shocked duo, both left staring at the shaking girl now meters away from them. She was now flanked by a mere two dogs, and by herself. The Fearling groaned and rasped like a wounded beast, her clawed hand tightening around the collar.

"**Bad dog…!**" she gasped, "**No shadow…!**"

A sudden puff of warm air ghosted over Jack's shoulder. Bunny seemed to pick up on the sudden change in the atmosphere behind them, and both tensed up in terror. A beat passed, along with a second puff of air, before the two decided it couldn't make things any worse by looking over at what was behind them.

Slowly, the two looked over their shoulders to see just what kind of monster they were now trapped with.

And came face to snout with a giant black horse.

A wave of utter stupefaction came over Bunny, but for Jack, it was soon instantly drained and replaced with pure awe.

The horse was enormous. It could easily pass off as a high-breed quality Shire Gelding* with its ink black coat, and giant stature. Its mane was concealed by gold and silver armor plates that tapered up and down its neck in an almost scaled pattern; a matching headpiece covering the horse's forehead and nose. Matching cuffs adorned its giant hooves and ankles, the toe of its hooves gilded with sharp silver cleavers that could easily cut someone's skull open. A saddle of silver and gold adorned its back, the seat lined with decorative gold ropes. The haunches and shoulders were draped in chainmail and covered in a thick layer of embroidered leather, its tail braided at the base before tapering off into a feathery tail down its back legs.

But even more impressive was the person atop the horse.

Jack had seen many images of Knights in his long years of life; from pictures, to statues, to replicas of armor. But this, this was a whole different image.

The Knight's armor, unlike the generic kind one would stereotypically imagine in story books, was not bulky or tin-canned. It boasted many more parts and fitted, giving the Knight a much more streamlined appearance. It was no doubt more made for better mobility and flexible movement, and less for protection against brute force. The armor itself was such a dark shade of grey, it could easily be mistaken for black when not looked at up close. Etched into the gauntlets, shin guards, chest, gloves, helmet, and boots were gold etchings and patterns that seemed to resemble horses and angular lines. And like the rest of the armor, the helmet was different from what one would usually think; it looked a lot more like a very form-fitted motorcycle helmet, but boasted the same eye-guard with vertical slits, as well as a long trailing ribbon of gold at the crown of the head.

And strapped to his back was a very long and heavy looking sword with an equally gold and black pattered sheath. A bow was clutched in the Knight's gloved hand, a very good testimony to where that arrow had come from.

"Uh…" Jack started lamely, "Are you the Black-"

The frost sprite yelped when, instead of acknowledging Jack, the Knight snapped his reins and caused his horse to bellow and rear up. Without a second to waste, the horse charged across the small island and, somehow defying the laws of its own size, jumped over the ravine separating them from the Fearling. The horse landed with an audible 'clunk', causing the dogs to growl and raise their hackles. But the Knight and his horse were undeterred, even as the small Fearling turned to him and growled.

"**Bad dog…! No shadow…!**" she rasped, "**No, no, bad…!**"

The dogs growled and snapped at the horse's hooves, but it did not move. If anything, it seemed to growl right back at them, its gold eyes narrowed and lips pulled back in an aggressive display. At once, the dogs charged at the horse. The Knight kicked its side, causing the horse to rear up on its back legs. It gave out a bellowing neigh, and just as the dogs got close enough to snap at its neck, it brought its dinner-plate sized hooves down.

Jack and Bunny physically cringed at the wet crunch, the dogs' heads now thoroughly crushed and caved in under the horse's hooves. Black sludge leaked and spurted from the gaping holes in their deformed skulls, as if their shadowy blood was still being pumped through their bodies.

The Fearling girl, now alone and defenseless, started to pant in what could have been distress. Her hand tightened on the collar, her claws and grip warping the metal components of the rough strap. The Fearling snarled and swung her dog-headed hand, as if to swat away some unseen insect.

The Knight dismounted his horse suddenly. And to the Guardians' shock, started to approach the Fearling without an ounce of caution.

"Hey! Get away! You can't just-"

"Wait…" Bunny grabbed Jack's shoulder suddenly, his stance tense but his gaze focused on the Knight.

"What are you doing!? That thing is dangerous!" Jack protested.

"He's the Black Knight, Jack," Bunny grunted, "He's made for this kinda thing. He'll be fine."

Jack gave Bunny an unsure, if not slightly disbelieving look. As if he was being told to just let someone hanging at the edge of a cliff to just fall. But he calmed himself, knowing there was little to nothing they could do anyways. They couldn't even reach the Knight from where they stood.

The Knight was now mere feet away from the Fearling girl. The little monster hissed and spat at him, but he seemed undeterred. Instead, he made to reach out and grab her.

"**NO!**" she shrieked, swinging her deformed arm at him, "**Bad dog! No! No!**"

She suddenly shrieked wordlessly when the Knight grabbed the dog-headed arm in a tight, unyielding grip. The head yowled and snarled, its maw trying to gain purchase on the Knight's arm, to no avail. The Fearling was lifted clear off the ground by its arm, clawing and spitting like a raged animal. The Guardians watched, mesmerized, as the Knight reached over his shoulder with his free hand, and drew his sword.

The long sword was actually a lot simpler than the rest of the Knight. The blade was a gleaming silver, but did not look to be made of any kind of metal they knew of. The handle was just a simple black cross-styled grip with only a few touches of gold here and there. And despite the darkness around them, the blade itself seemed to glow with a soft translucent light.

Seeing the blade, the Fearling increased her struggles tenfold, this time putting her legs to use by trying to kick or scratch at anything to find purchase. She kept screaming out 'no', 'bad dog', and 'no shadow'. It was a disconcerting sight, if not a very disturbing and grossly macabre one.

Wordless, the Knight raised the sword up, the blade leveled with the base of the Fearling's arm, and swung it faster than a flash.

The absolute blood-curdling scream that resonated through the void was deafening. It only made that sick sensation in Jack's gut all the more worse. Unable to take the sight or the sound, the frost sprite dropped to his knees and purged whatever it was he ate in the last twenty-four hours. Bunny instantly dropped to his haunches and placed an uncertain paw on Jack's shaking back, he himself also looking sick.

The Fearling fell onto its back and continued to scream and writhe, its distorted arm now severed and held aloft in the Knight's hand. He tossed it aside and over the edge into the abyss as the Fearling arched her back in agony. The Knight planted his sword into the ground and knelt beside her. Gently, almost tenderly, he picked the sobbing Fearling up into his arms. He held her steadily to his armored chest and cupped the back of her head, making her look up into his concealed visage. The Fearling could only groan in disoriented agony as he sat her down on his propped knee, allowing his right hand to reach down for the collar in her remaining hand.

The collar was stuck fast in her merciless grip, but he managed to tug it free from her hold. The Knight seemed to inspect it briefly, before he set it aside on the ground, and reached into a hidden pocket within his breast plate. Jack and Bunny leaned forward to try and see what he had, and were stunned to see…

A stuffed dog toy.

The toy was obviously worn and torn, the fuzzy fabric worn from age and a long life of being held and cuddled. The pink ribbon around its neck had seen better days, and looked to have been retied on numerous occasions. One of its black button eyes was missing, and there was a pink, heart-shaped patch sewn onto one of its haunches. A small, surprisingly unscathed silver bell hung from the ribbon on its neck.

'_That bell…where have I seen that before…?'_ Jack thought deftly.

The Knight, angling the Fearling's head so it was level with his collar, brought the toy up into her line of vision. All at once, the shaking, shuddering, and rasping seemed to stop, and she seemed to stare at it in transfixed curiosity. The Guardians held their breath, unsure, frightened, yet anticipating what would happen next.

They flinched as, almost hesitantly, the Fearling reached out with her shaky, clawed hand for the toy. Her deformed fingers wrapped around its body, caging the old toy, before she brought it level with where he face was hidden by her hair. A beat passed, and as if something had snapped, the atmosphere seemed to collapse.

"Good dog…"

It was the last thing the two Guardians heard – the sound of a little girl waking up from a nightmare.

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

"…-ck…-ack…! Jack!"

A throb pulsed through the frost sprite's head, aggravated by the sound of someone saying some person's name. No wait, that was his name, wasn't it? Jack? Yes, that's right. He's Jack Frost. He was the Guardian of Fun, the trouble-maker, a spirit revived by The Man in the Moon…

…and his head _fucking hurt!_

"Jack! Please be waking up now!" another voice, this one male – the one before it was female.

'_Tooth, North…'_ he wondered blearily.

Jack suddenly yelped and his eyes shot open when something small and grainy slapped his cheek. He hissed and cringed at the light of a street-lamp nearly blinding his unadjusted eyes. Coupled with Sandy's natural glow – did that little jerk had just _slap_ him?* – he vaguely wondered if this is what most kids felt like when they had to wake up on a school day. No wonder they liked to fake being sick…

North, Tooth, and Sandy's visages suddenly appeared in his line of vision, their faces conveying palpable concern. How was it they were all around him anyways?

'_Oh…' _he thought, _'I'm lying down.'_

Groaning, Jack pushed himself up onto his elbows. His joints creaked and protested painfully against the movement, his head throbbing along with his aching body. The others quickly backed off to give him some space and a moment to compose himself.

"Jack?" Tooth started, worried, "Are you okay?"

The frost sprite mumbled something under his breath and put his head in his hands. What in the name of hell _happened_ to him? It felt like he was hit by a damn truck! And the last thing he could remember was…

'_Dogs…Fearling, the Knight, Bunny…?'_ suddenly Jack was fully awake and oblivious to his aches.

"Bunny! The Knight!" He suddenly cried, "N-North! W-we saw the Knight! A-and there was a…a Fearling, o-or something! And-"

"Jack, calm yourself," North soothed, holding his hands up in a placating manner, "We know. Bunny woke up before you and explained."

Tensing, Jack veered his head around – ignoring the headache that came with it – and saw Bunny flopped over one of the seats in North's sleigh, his ears flopped over his eyes. He was in the classic 'I have a huge-ass headache' position, and he was no doubt experiencing the same pains and aches as Jack was. It kind of reminded Jack of the party Patrick had last St. Patrick's day, where Bunny challenged the Leprechaun to a drinking contest. Needless to say, Bunny suffered the hangover of an immortal life-time – he didn't even win the contest either.*

Jack suddenly gasped and looked around. The neighborhood…it was back. He was still behind the house and only a few feet away from the pile of lumber he had been supposedly stuck in. There was no void. There were no islands, just solid ground. The sky was no longer grey, and the Moon was present above them. Jack never thought he would be so relieved to see the Moon before in his life. It meant they were back.

'_But…back from where? What was that place?'_ he thought.

"You are probably wondering what that place was, da?" North inquired, seemingly reading Jack's bewildered expression.

"Uh, yeah, kind of." Jack replied, rubbing his sore head. Damn, he hoped this headache would go away soon.

"It is called Umbra Inanis, or Shadow Realm,"* North elaborated, "I do not know much about it, but I do know is very dangerous, very dark place."

'_No shit…'_ Jack thought bitterly. But he suddenly frowned and looked up at his fellow Guardians.

"Wait, how did me and Bunny get there?" he asked, "And where did the Knight go?"

The three shared uncertain looks with one another. Jack recognized it as a look the others often shared when they were fairly unsure of something, and wondering whether or not it was worth elaborating on.

Sandy finally shook his head, a large question mark appearing over his head. North nodded.

"We do not know," he said, "Shadow Realm is very forbidden, made only for shadows. People do not easily enter it, and even less so do they leave it. You and Bunny are very lucky. Knight seems to know how to cross between both worlds."

"As for the Knight, we don't know what happened to him," Tooth added, "We just found you and Bunny a few minutes ago passed out."

Jack felt the throbbing in his head only increase by all of the information – or more lack thereof. This was too much, but also too little. He both wanted to know more to make sense of this whole thing, but he also just wanted to be _done_ with all of this. Everything he saw in that place…just the memory of it made Jack want to vomit again. He felt sick, tired, and he was in pain. He just wanted to…no, not to sleep, sleep meant nightmares. He just wanted…to _get out._

A heavy hand on his shoulder brought Jack out of his dark resolve. He looked up blearily into North's concerned face as his beefy hand gently squeezed his shoulder.

"We will discuss more at Workshop," he said, directing his gaze up to the Moon, "I am sure Manny has things to say about all this. You and Bunny need rest too."

Rest…peace…yes, he could _really_ use that now.

Nodding dazedly, Jack allowed North to help him to his feet. Tooth suddenly let out a startled 'oh' and flitted over to the pile of lumber. She soon came back, and with Jack's staff carefully held in her hands.

"We found it on the ground by your feet." She said.

Jack gratefully took his staff, a cool, calming sense of relief washing over him at the familiar weight and rough texture in his hands. Casting one last glance to the forest, Jack followed his fellow Guardians back to the sleigh. Bunny had to be coaxed to move over a bit to let the others have a place to sit, but before Jack got in, he caught a spot of silver out of the corner of his eye.

He looked to the front of the sleigh and towards the reindeer patiently waiting to take off. Frowning, he looked over the harnesses and gear on the animals. His eyes widened in shock and recognition.

"North…" he started, "Those bells on the reindeer…"

"Hm? What about them?" North asked curiously as he shifted his reins.

Jack nodded over to them, "They look the same as the bell on that stuffed toy the Knight gave to the Fearling."

"Toy?" North inquired, raised a brow. Jack looked at him in confusion.

"Bunny didn't say?" he asked. North shrugged.

"He only told us about Fearling, the Knight, and the dogs," he said, "He said nothing about toy, only that Knight somehow calmed Fearling. But you say something with a toy happened?"

Frowning, Jack nodded and began to explain the last parts of the tale Bunny either forgot to mention, or saw as irrelevant. That or the Pooka was just in too much pain at the time to give any big details. The latter seemed like the most plausible answer.

But when he was done recounting the details of the Knight giving the Fearling child a stuffed dog toy with a bell identical to the ones the reindeer wore, North suddenly gained a mystified expression on his face. He almost looked like he was in a trance, revisiting an old memory.

He didn't speak for a long moment, but when he did, his voice was low and solemn.

"This stuffed puppy," he started, "Did it have pink ribbon around neck?"

"Um, yeah," Jack said, suddenly uneasy, "Granted it looked old, but yeah, pink ribbon, a heart-shaped patch, and a bell."

Again, North fell silent, and the others were giving the large man strange looks. Even Bunny looked interested, if not slightly confused. North suddenly looked up and around the young neighborhood, his eyes narrowed before they seemed to light up in realization.

"Stephanie Trenton." He breathed.*

"Wait, who?" Jack asked. North shook his head sadly and sat on the driver's seat, suddenly looking exhausted.

"Jack, that toy was Christmas present," he started, "I made it personally myself, three years ago for little girl named Stephanie Trenton."

"You made it yerself?" Bunny grunted, "That's rare of ya."

"Yes. Sweet girl, always made Nice List," he said, "Child like her always deserves something special like that toy…"

"What do you mean?" Tooth inquired, "And why put one of the reindeer bells on it? They're magic, aren't they?"

North nodded, "Yes, they are," He said, "I infused bells with spell of protection, to bring safety to long journeys."

"But then…why give her a toy with a bell?" Jack asked, becoming even more lost by the minute, "You don't just go passing out random magic trinkets do you?"

North shook his head, "No, I do not. But every now and again, I give child special toy to help them overcome a hardship."

"Something happened to her?" Bunny asked. North sighed and nodded, ribbing his forehead.

"Yes…" he said, staring down at his lap forlornly, "Three years ago, little Stephanie was hurt very badly, and traumatized. It was only a week before Christmas when it happened, and I made her that stuffed dog to give her hope and to protect her."

The others shared concerned looks with one another, uneasy from North's vagueness.

"Well? What happened to her?" Bunny asked urgently.

The others waited with bated breath as North sighed heavily and crossed his arms. His baby-blue eyes remained locked onto the floor of his sleigh, as if he was unable to meet their gazes under the circumstances.

"Stephanie Trenton lost her left arm three years ago…" he said, his arms tightening around himself.

"She was mauled by dog."

To be continued…

**X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X**

_A/N~ Oh my f***ing GAWD, I am NEVER drinking red bull ever again. EVER. I actually had this ¾ of the way done yesterday, but then I decided it might help my motivation to try one of my brother's red bulls…_

_Somewhere out there, there is a village missing their idiot. _

_Oh my god, I coma-crashed after just one can! I didn't even write! I just sat at my computer playing solitaire for a good three hours, hopped up and my legs bouncing like rabbits. Suddenly I got tired and took a nap at 1:45pm. I woke up, it was 6:23 in the morning. NEVER. AGAIN._

_So! Enjoy this update! I now actually have a plot for this! YES! I got ideas and I have almost the entire thing planned out! You're probably confused by all this by now, but fear not! All shall be made clear in time my dear readers~_

_Enjoy!_

_- I have NO idea if Jack's powers can ONLY be channeled if he has his staff. In the movie, he seemed incapable of flight at the very least without it. I'm not too sure about his ice powers, but for convenience's sake, he has no way to channel his powers in this fic without his staff._

_- A Shire Gelding is a breed of horse. It is named tallest and overall largest horse out of all the horse breeds. They're more used for labor and heavy-hauling, but are overall gorgeous!_

_- Sandy you little sh**! You're the Guardian of Dreams! You don't wake people up like that!...unless you are video-taping them. XD_

_- Hey. Hey Pretzel. Pretzel-chan. Look. Look at this awful joke you have created. You have made me create this terrible joke that shall never die, while I suffer its wrath. Thank you. (kidding! XD)_

_- Umbra Inanis is two Latin words that loosely translate to 'shadow void'. Umbra refers to the Latin word for shadow, or can be used to describe the darkest part of a shadow. While Inanis is the Latin word that refers to a void, or empty space._

_- Okay, challenge time! This name is made up, yes, but where did I come up with it? Hint; it has to do with a book called Cujo. If you can tell me how I came up with the name, I will give you a life-time of cookies, and use an idea you have for one of my Blackice 100 themes drabbles. GO!_

_~S~_


End file.
